6 Instagram photos ad wizards want

If marketers could buy your photos, which would be the most popular?

KelliB. Grant

Zeddie Little attends the 2012 ING New York City Marathon opening day (D Dipasupil/Getty Images)

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Pretty People

Could your next Instagram photo show up as an advertisement? The talk all day today was whether Facebook-owned Instagram’s updated privacy policy, which kicks in Jan. 16, would allow businesses to pay the company to use consumers’ usernames, photos and other details in ads and displays. The company responded in a blog post late Tuesday, saying “It is not our intention to sell your photos.” But the debate raises the question: What might make your photos bait for advertisers? Well, it’ll help if you’re stunning to look at. Remember the Ridiculously Photogenic Guy? Zeddie “Watkins” Little found fame when he was snapped running a 10-kilometer race in Charleston, S.C. The picture went viral. Similarly, viral Instagram pictures could help launch careers in modeling, acting or TV, says branding expert Rob Frankel. “If you are even somewhat attractive, you could be a contender,” he says. Dating websites like Match.com and eHarmony.com show people that could “almost” be models, Frankel says, or a guy someone would take home to meet their mother. Just like the Ridiculously Photogenic Guy. — By Kelli B. Grant & Quentin Fottrell

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Endorsed by: YOU

Celebrity endorsements appeal to consumer aspirations. But pictures of regular people using brand-name products comes across as more credible — ad viewers assume the person genuinely likes the product, instead of having been paid to promote it, says Ken Manning, a professor of marketing at Colorado State University. “We tend to gravitate toward people that are like us, similar to us,” he says. Although brands will pay Instagram to use photos, the consumer photographers (and their subjects) aren’t likely to see any cash from the collaboration.

@00qnyc/WSJ

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Vive l’Amour

Sure, it’s unlikely that your holiday snap will lure generations of visitors to Paris like Robert Doisneau’s famous photograph “The Kiss,” taken in 1950. But it could happen with the right planning. “Shots of people sharing a genuine moment in front of iconic monuments are winners,” says Anne Banas, executive editor of SmarterTravel.com. “It’s perfect branding for the destination.” But if you want to keep such moments private, it may be best to use a different app. Instagram says the only way to opt out of its new terms that allow advertisers access is to cancel your account.

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LOLPets

A person in an ad might rate a 4 on one viewer’s attractiveness scale and a 10 on another’s. But pets and baby animals have a more universal cute factor that can prompt clicks, says L.J. Shrum, chair of the marketing department at the University of Texas at San Antonio. Businesses are likely to cast a wide net of potential photos, testing multiple options to see which get the best response — so don’t be surprised if one of yours pops up.

@rubinafillion/WSJ

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Handicraft Cuteness

Your cute picture of red reindeer cake decorations, wooden iPhone cases or rag dolls made out of tattered cushion covers could become an Internet hit. There’s a lot of demand for old stuff and pictures of old stuff, experts say. Etsy, a company that sells vintage goods and handmade crafts online, was recently valued at $600 million, the Wall Street Journal reported. The best part: Not only would such photos earn cachet for the person who took the photo, Frankel says, they could also be a platform for promoting the photographer’s own talent for turning a ball of string into a Medieval sweater cape.

@squirehiggins

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On-the-Go Actions

Instagram users largely access photos from their phone, so advertisers want images that are easy to understand and inspire immediate action, says Steven Osinski, a professor of marketing at San Diego State University. Think: someone sipping a latte or enjoying a night out with friends. The medium isn’t likely to provide effective ads for things people have to wait and think about later, like picking a vacation destination or buying a hard-to-find item, he says.

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